Ian and Rachell met during a fall event at The Jacksonville Zoo called Spooktacular. He,Josh and their little boys came strolling in for an eventful evening and boy was it…Ian got a gal out of it! the first date,November 16th 2020,We ate dinner at Xtreme Wings on North Main Street followed by a bit of a wild night at “The 7”…a local hole-in-the-wall bar called flight 747 lounge. We joke that Ian wanted “somebody’s problem” to be his own. That song,Somebody’s Problem by Morgan Wallen, is forever Ian’s ringtone. We continued to talk and see each other as often as possible. Dates were simple and perfect. there were many homemade dinners and dancing in the kitchen,and then things like bowling with our kids to introduce them to each other. we were talking through that first thanksgiving…and we spent that Christmas together. soon after Christmas,we realized we didn’t want anymore nights alone and Rachell moved in.

Our sweet,precious little girl. Rachell was absolutely,positively,out-of-her-mind,shocked. never sad,just worried how Ian was going to react…and scared to death about how all the kids and Ian’s dad,Tim would react. haha! they were all excited! I took a test after work one day,thinking I possibly had Covid again. to my extreme surprise,the Covid test was negative and the pregnancy test was positive. Ian was coming in from work and I met him on our front porch,I told him that Josh had won his bet. *Josh had made a bet with us that we’d get pregnant before we got engaged/married” Ian’s response to my comment was “you think?!” once I assured him with taking two tests,he says “well don’t tell him!” LOL! Kinley is such an amazing little blessing. ya see,I was told I’d never be able to carry a baby again without the help of a doctor and Ian’s mom passed away in September of 2021,almost exactly one year before Kinley’s due date. we know Kinley is her gift to us. and because of that,Kinley carries his mother’s first name,Carlene as her middle name. Kinley came from “Kenleigh Rose”,a tiger out at the Jacksonville Zoo,where Ian and Rachell met.

Ian randomly asked me to stop by the new boat ramp they built there on 17. I thought nothing of it since I wanted to see it anyway and knowing he’d been working on his dad’s boat,getting it water-ready. while walking along the sidewalk,looking up at the storm that was rolling in,headed back to the car,Banner ran up ahead…and before I could even process what was happening,Ian quickly turned around,kneeled down and asked if I’d marry him. I was completely shocked. I thought he was going to do it on Saturday while all our family and friends were around Banner’s Birthday and our gender reveal. when he didn’t,I figured he’d do it on my birthday in July. It was so sweet,intimate and perfect.

This isn’t your typical destination wedding. we want small,simple,intimate and fun. We’d like you to think of this as a personal vacation in the mountains…and during one of the days you’d be attending a wedding. The wedding will be at a small resort,in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. It’s a beautiful place in the small town Ian spent many childhood summers in with his grandparents. the day of the wedding is the anniversary of our first date…we didn’t know then that we would end up where we are,but we want to spend every anniversary being reminded. **PLEASE NOTE*** we absolutely love your children,but because of the space and the overall location,this will be a kid-free wedding.